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There was a notable upset to the staying feature on Day 2 of The Championships with the Sydney Cup 2025 results going the way of Bjorn Baker‘s $20 outsider Arapaho who won the two-mile classic in record time.

The evergreen eight-year-old celebrated his first victory of the autumn when improving on a lead-up fourth in the Tancred Stakes to dominate the Group 1 $2 million Sydney Cup (3200m) with nearly three lengths to spare on the line over the Matthew Smith trained Waltham ($51).

Adding even more value to this year’s juicy Sydney Cup trifecta was the third placing of the Chris Waller trained River Of Stars ($20), while dour stayer Mostly Cloudy ($41) put in a game effort to run fourth also at big odds.

Lope De Vega gelding Arapaho was ridden to victory by Rachel King, the horse relishing a drop back to 56kg after finishing under two lengths back at WFA with 59kg in the Tancred over 2400m behind Dubai Honour last time out.

“Well, we get a bit emotional about this horse at the stables, we love him, and we gave him a bit of Murray Baker treatment on Thursday, and he relaxed beautifully today,” Baker said.

“That entails just doing a solid piece of groundwork, and he’s a sound horse.

“We know he’s got acceleration and that’s where having a father that won everything, but the Melbourne Cup comes into it.

“So impressive and great ride today, Rachel King, just held him up, held him, held him, held him, and he exploded, which he can do.”

For Baker it was his second elite level win in seven days following on from Stefi Magnetica’s upset in last Saturday’s Doncaster Mile.

“I’m the luckiest man in the world, I’m just lucky to train good horses that are fit, healthy and well,” Baker added.

It was the heavily backed favourite Alalcance coming off her Group 2 Chairman’s Quality win leading the Sydney Cup field by a margin on the turn for home with the front-running grey eventually fading right out to run 17th some 16 lengths beaten in a disappointing effort.

“Probably come to the end of her prep. Just raced a bit keen in the blinkers. Probably needs to conserve a bit more getting out to this trip,” was jockey Tim Clark‘s assessment post-race of the beaten favourite.

At the top of the straight, River Of Stars and the eventual winner Arapaho moved up to hit the front with the latter dashing clear to finish off in impressive style running his rivals ragged the closing stages.

He won the 2023 Tancred before a fourth in that year’s Sydney Cup but was superior in his second shot at the 3200m showdown despite his age.

“You can just see what this horse means to everyone, he’s just been a superstar, he’s won races we never thought he even should have been in at the start and to do what he did today,” King said.

“I probably had as many doubts as everyone else about 3200m, I wasn’t quite sure, you know, but the one thing I always say to everyone is I’ve never ridden a horse so honest, he just tries.

“I was bolting, I had to count to 10 and just wait until I got to the top of the rise. He’s got an awesome turn of foot for a stayer.

“I knew if he got an economical run, which he did himself because he jumped super today and put himself in a beautiful spot.

“He went to sleep and look credit to Bjorn and his team. They had him perfect, cherry ripe today, couldn’t have been any fitter and feeling any better.”

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